


I'm a kindergarten teacher, dammit, not a mother hen

by amerasu1013 (amerasu_1013)



Category: Star Trek (2009)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Humor, Kid Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-08-15
Updated: 2010-08-15
Packaged: 2017-10-11 02:41:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/107468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amerasu_1013/pseuds/amerasu1013
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bones is a kindergarten teacher. Little Jimmy Kirk and the rest of the children make it a daunting task, indeed, but Bones wouldn't miss it for the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I'm a kindergarten teacher, dammit, not a mother hen

**Author's Note:**

> This was first published at the st_xi_kink_meme over at delicious.com for this prompt:
> 
> _"Kindergarten teacher Bones who's exhausted from running after Jim and making him stop jumping out of windows and adorable Chekov with a lisp and Sulu always wants to play cops and burglars while Scotty adopts stray dogs and Uhura kicks Jim when he tries to kiss her and Nero is mean to Spock who starts to stutter when Jim hugs him..."_
> 
> Betaed, as usual, by the amazing infiniterider. Thanks Michelle!!! All remaining mistakes are mine, especially since English is not my native tongue.
> 
> Also, disclaimer: I own nothing, all Star Trek belongs to people way more important than me. This is a work of fiction, no offense is intended.
> 
> Can also be found at my journal: http://amerasu1013.livejournal.com/1376.html
> 
> Rated Teen for Bones' potty mouth.

Week 1

Leonard walks along the corridor. He’s gonna meet his kindergarten group for the first time, and he’s a little excited. Being a kindergarten teacher was not what he imagined doing when he graduated, but someone has to earn money and Jocelyn sure can’t be persuaded to work when there’s an ex-husband to pay all the bills. Hell, that’s life. And he likes children, and they like him, so it’s gonna be alright. Plus, how hard can it be to watch a couple of kids?

Leonard opens the door and all hell breaks loose.

A handful of children are standing in a circle, shrieking and shouting and throwing things at two boys rolling around on the floor. The two boys, one blonde human and a bigger Romulan kid, are fighting viciously, punching and kicking, and biting, too, and no one seems to have noticed Leonard entering the room

“What the hell is going on here?!”

The children freeze, but the two boys continue to fight. Leonard stalks over and grabs each at the scruff of their necks. Both are startled by his sudden appearance, but the Romulan boy still tries to kick the smaller human, while the blonde glares furiously and tries to wriggle out of Leonard’s grip.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

Both boys subside, still breathing heavily. Then they start yelling at the same time.

“Jimmy made fun of my ears!”

“Nero said I smell funny!”

Leonard growls and shakes them a little.

“Shut up, both of you! Jesus, this is my first day, and the first thing I have to do is break up a goddamned fight!”

He pauses. All children are looking at him with wide eyes now. The blond kid’s lower lip starts to wobble suspiciously. Oh no. Please, no.

A tiny boy with adorable curls is the first to break. He flops down on his bottom and starts to sob. Soon, every kid in the room is crying.

Jesus. Why did he think this would be easy? Plus, he might have to work on that cursing.

 

Week 3

No, being a kindergarten teacher is not easy. In fact, it’s exhausting. Leonard clamps Jimmy under his arm and climbs back down. He looked somewhere else for just one second, and the kid has managed to climb all the way to the top of the tree, again. This is the third time this happened, and Leonard would be impressed by Jimmy’s determination, if the little boy wouldn’t always just sit up there, waiting to be rescued. Leonard is pretty sure Jimmy’s not actually afraid of climbing down again and just wants to annoy him and make him sweat.

He drops Jimmy off in the time-out corner and sternly tells him to stay there for 15 minutes. Jimmy pouts a little, but it’s obviously faked, because 30 seconds later he’s quite happily playing with a toy spaceship he pulled from hell knows where. Leonard shakes his head and settles back into his chair. Maybe he’ll get 5 minutes of peace and quiet now.

A hand tugs on his sleeve. Tiny Pasha is standing there and gives him a wide, toothless grin. The little boy’s sunny demeanor always puts a smile on Leonard’s face and he takes the picture Pasha gives him and looks at it. Colorful swirls adorn the paper. With a lot of imagination one might see Pasha and his best friend Hikaru. At least, that’s what Leonard assumes, since Pasha is rarely drawing anything else.

“That’s beautiful, Pasha. Well done.”

He pats the boy’s adorable curls and Pasha is beaming. Then he’s scrambling into Leonard’s chair and settles in his lap. Leonard is a bit surprised but tucks the little boy closer. He listens to Pasha’s excited explanations about his painting and smiles to himself. Between the lisp and the Russian words he barely understands one third of what the boy is saying, but he doesn’t mind the small warm body pressed close to him.

 

Week 7

Little Jimmy Kirk is crying again. Big, heartfelt sobs at the injustice of the world. His short arms are around Leonard’s neck, gripping tight, and the boy’s hot tears soak his shirt. Leonard makes soothing noises and settles in his chair, patting the kid’s back. Jimmy’s mom has left on another mission, and Jimmy came in this morning sullen and pouting. He didn’t want to play with the other kids and grumbled around in a corner. He didn’t sleep during nap time and refused to eat his lunch. Later, he seemed a little better and Leonard had to pull him down from the window sill. Jimmy played a bit with Hikaru, both delighted with their toy swords (Leonard refuses to admit he carved them). His laughter put a smile on Leonard’s face. Kid has it hard enough, and it’s nice to see him happy and carefree.

But then he pulled on Nyota’s hair and the little girl kicked him. And suddenly, everything came back and now Jimmy’s crying and clinging to Leonard like a monkey. Leonard gently caresses the boy’s back and wonders how to comfort him. Jimmy’s hiccupping and sobbing, fat tears slide down Leonard’s neck and under his shirt. He misses his mom, desperately, and doesn’t understand why she left.

He clears his throat. The boy’s sorrow is infectious, and he’s suddenly aware of how much he misses his little girl and how long it’s been since he saw her.

“You know, Jimmy, I have a kid, too.”

Jimmy hiccups and pulls back a little to look at him.

“Really?”

“Yeah. She lives far, far away. I miss her, too.”

“You do?”

Jimmy’s lower lip is still trembling and tears are clinging to his lashes, but they don’t fall, and he seems a little better.

“Yeah, I do. She lives with her mom, and I don’t see her all that often.”

“Why?”

He exhales loudly. How to explain divorce to a five-year old?

“Well, her mom and she moved away. Um. We were married, once, but we aren’t anymore.”

“Oh, like a dee-voice? My cousin Gina’s parents got a dee-voice and now she has two rooms and two bicycles and gets lots of toys and candy when she visits her dad.”

“Um, yeah, like a divorce. And I miss my daughter, very much, but I always think of her, every day. I’m sure your mom thinks of you a lot, too.”

“Hm.” Jimmy grumbles a little but settles more comfortably in Leonard’s lap. He wipes his eyes and leans against him, putting his arms back around Leonard’s neck.

“What’s her name?”

“Joanna.”

“That’s a pretty name. Maybe she can come visit you and play with us some time?”

“That’d be nice, kid.”

Jimmy smiles and ducks his head when Leonard calls him that. It’s sweet and adorable, and Leonard can’t help but wonder how different Jimmy’s home must be. The boy’s stepfather is a dick, and he’s sure Jimmy doesn’t get all that much love and attention with his mother constantly gone. He ruffles the kid’s hair and vows to make sure Jimmy knows people care about him until she’s back.

“Tell me about Joanna?”

And Leonard does.

 

Week 9

The new kid is quiet. Granted, he’s Vulcan, but still it’s unnerving seeing that tiny expressionless face and emotionless eyes looking at you. The boy’s father interrogated Leonard something fierce but seemed slightly mollified – if Vulcans can be that – when he found out Leonard actually has a degree in xenobiology. The mother is human, and that had been a surprise, and she’s as sweet as you can get. She’s a delight, really, constantly smiling and laughing and Leonard wonders what she might see in the cold robot she’s married to. But, that’s nothing for him to speculate about.

Little Spock is clinging to his mother and lets her go very reluctantly when she tells him they must leave. His head is bowed and he grips his weird toothy teddy-bear-thing tightly as he follows Leonard towards his group’s room. Leonard doesn’t try to touch the boy, he’s not stupid, but he wonders how to comfort the kid. It’s clear the little half-Vulcan is upset and he doesn’t know a first thing about how to deal with that.

They step through the room and Spock stops quite suddenly. Leonard stands next to him and surveys the group. Only the usual mayhem. Jimmy and Hikaru have turned the all pillows into some kind of castle and are dueling fiercely with their swords while screaming loudly about pirates and treasure. Nyota and Gaila have apparently managed to put little Pasha into some kind of dress and are now brushing his hair. Pasha wears a scowl but leans back into Nyota’s arms and lets himself be petted. Monty seems to be trying to build some kind of toy for the group’s hamster again, all the while munching on the cookies his Mom keeps sending over. Nero and Ayel are lurking in a corner, whispering and scowling at the other children. The two little Romulans have never quite fitted into their group and the dislike is mutual. Jimmy and Nyota have tried to include and befriend them, but after the fourth or so brawl they’ve given up and Nero and Ayel seem to be quite content on their own.

Spock seems quite surprised and nervous at the group’s loud and wild behavior and a tiny hand tentatively reached out to grip Leonard’s pants. Leonard raises an eyebrow at that but is quick to smooth his face when the little Vulcan notices, blushes and withdraws his hand. He clears his throat.

“Children, I want you to meet someone.”

The kids stop playing and look over. Spock’s eyes widen and he inches behind Leonard’s legs. Leonard prods him forward again.

“This is Spock. He’s new, so be nice.”

He leaves the little Vulcan who gazes somewhat desperately at him and goes untangle Hikaru from the pillows that have fallen on him. It takes a while, since the little boy is unwilling to let go of his sword or his pirate hat, and when he turns back around the rest of the group is standing close to Spock who looks nervous and scared. Leonard figures the kid has never seen human kids before, since his family only just moved here. He decides to leave them alone, for now it seems the group is curious rather than hostile.

Leonard puts Hikaru back on his feet, hat and sword and all, and dusts him off. He absently listens to the group talk, ready to interfere if it seems like Spock might need rescuing. The other kids can get quite wild, and he’s not sure the Vulcan is comfortable with that.

“Your name is Spock? I’m Jimmy. Your ears look cute. Are you a Vulcan?” Figures Jimmy would be the first to talk to the new kid, he’s insanely curious.

“Affirmative.” Spock’s voice is low and hesitant.

“You talk weird. You wanna play a game?”

And Leonard really shouldn’t have worried about Spock fitting into their group, soon Jimmy and Spock and Monty are building an enormous tower out of every colorful block in their room and the little Vulcan seems content and almost happy to listen to Jimmy’s constant chatter.

 

Week 11

It’s naptime, and all children are sleeping peacefully. Nyota and Gaila are curled around one another, freshly painted toenails pink and shiny. Pasha tired himself out trying to keep up with Hikaru’s antics on the monkey bars and is snoring softly, air whistling through the gap in his front teeth. Hikaru is still clutching his sword, unwilling to part with it even while sleeping and Monty has not only three teddy bears but also a sandwich in his bed. Leonard doesn’t know where that came from, he searched the boy and the bed, but it seems like he’ll have to wash the kid again after he rolls over and squashes the sandwich. Wouldn’t be the first time. Ayel and Nero look like little mummies, as always, all bundled up in their blankets, on their back and arms crossed over their chests.

Jimmy and Spock are a surprise, though. Jimmy has climbed into the little Vulcan’s bed again, cuddling him close, and Spock doesn’t seem to mind. Jimmy really has taken to the other boy, constantly dragging him around and showing him stuff and wanting to play with him. At first, Spock seemed rather reluctant, drew his hand back and scowled at the human, but Jimmy was persistent and now they are pretty inseparable. It’s good for them, too. Spock is not nearly as shy and nervous as he was at first and Jimmy’s content to play on the floor without climbing up dangerous stuff now.****

Leonard settles back and closes his eyes. He might as well take a nap himself.

Yelling wakes him. He sits up straight and staggers to his feet. What the hell?

All the kids are standing and shouting at each other. No, Nero and Ayel stand on one side, the rest of the group on the other. Jimmy’s fists are balled, his eyes flashing dangerously. Hikaru has his sword raised, Monty scowls, his accent is so heavy he’s barely understandable. Even tiny Pasha wears a fierce expression. Insults are flying back and forth. At the back of the group Spock is sitting on his bottom, tears sliding down his face, and Jesus, is the Vulcan bleeding? Nyota and Gaila have their arms around the boy and are glaring at the two Romulan boys. What the hell is going on?

“Leave Spock alone!”

“He’s an abomination!”

“I don’t know what that means, but don’t call him that! I bet it’s mean! Why did you hit him?”

“He deserved it!”

“You mustn’t hit other people!” And that is rich, coming from Jimmy, who’s been fighting hell of a lot with Nero and never pulled any punches.

“That’s enough! Everybody be quiet!”

The children subside, still glaring.

“What happened here?”

Everybody starts talking at once, getting louder and louder until Leonard threatens to put them all in the time-out corner. He got the gist of it, though. Seems like Nero punched Spock for no reason other than existing and Ayel stomped on his painting, and all the other kids instantly leapt to the Vulcan’s defense. He’s insanely proud, which he can’t tell them, of course. Instead he gives all of them a stern lecture about fighting and violence, patches Spock up, takes Nero and Ayel to the director’s office and rings their parents. And if he hands out cookies afterwards, no one will ever know.

Nero’s and Ayel’s parents argue a lot, Leonard and the director argue back and in the end both Romulan kids move to another group. Leonard can’t make himself tell his children off when they cheer at the news. Soon everybody is laughing and patting Spock’s shoulders and Jimmy tells him he’ll make sure that nobody ever is mean to him again. Spock gets shy at all the attention and retreats towards Leonard. He pulls the little Vulcan into his lap. Spock stiffens a little but soon leans trustingly against him. Jimmy, of course, has to sit next to Spock, so he cuddles both boys close and reads them a story.

 

Week 16

It’s Leonard’s birthday, and he’s a little hung-over. He tried calling Jocelyn the night before, because they’d agreed that he could take Joanna over the weekend, but the stupid bitch never picked up. He drank a lot after that and woke up with a headache the size of Saturn. The sun is bright, birds are singing, and he really isn’t in the mood to deal with this shit. He hopes his group will be not as loud as usual today.

They are not. He enters and they are playing quite peacefully. Leonard approves and settles into his usual chair. Maybe if he closes his eyes his headache will recede a little.

“Mr. Bones?” Ever since Jimmy found out he used to be a doctor he’s called him that, and the nickname stuck. He doesn’t mind, not really.

Leonard opens his eyes. Jimmy is standing in front of him, hands hidden behind his back and smiles brightly.

“What is it, kid?”

“I got you something!”

Suddenly there’s a wrapped package thrust in his lap. Leonard blinks.

“Uh, thanks?”

“You’re welcome! Happy birthday! Don’t you wanna open it? I wrapped it all on my own.”

Yeah, Leonard can see that. He unwraps the miles and miles of ribbon. A teddy bear.

“When my mom is gone, I sleep with him. I thought because you miss Joanna you might like him? When you’re lonely? He’s real soft.”

Leonards blinks and blinks. He won’t cry, dammit. He clears his throat.

“Thanks, kid. Yeah, I- I like him.”****

Jimmy beams and gives him a hug. Leonard holds him close and presses a kiss to the boy’s forehead. Damn kid always getting under his defenses. And suddenly, all of his children are around him, smiling and congratulating him. Hikaru gives him a pirate eye-patch, Monty’s mum baked a cake which her son only ate half of and Nyota and Gaila got him a book about ponies. Pasha made a painting with a tall stick figure surrounded by smaller ones and Spock fidgets and puts a Vulcan flower next to his feet before he retreats.

Leonard clutches his presents and listens to the god-awful singing of “Happy Birthday” and smiles and smiles. Yeah, being a kindergarten teacher is great.

 

 

The End…


End file.
